Recent Comments

I'll be sharing it with the kids today.

That may be where this goes once I get the basics in place.  And after having read many a tortured rhyme scheme, I think I might be able to do at least as well as some published "authors."  Especially if I plagiarize from you (just kidding, I'd link to it /notplagiarism).

What sort of timeframe is this in?  This seems like a really high number of reps to be hititng consecutively in an explosive exercise.  Are these from the floor or the hang?

Fauquier County.  Lovely horse farms, rolling hills, a few palatial estates - and one of the best  geographical names this side of Djibouti.

I miss a lot of the jokes; if I have a moment, I hit up the googles or click through a link to see to what the allusion is.  Allusion probably my favorite literary device; done well, enhanced meaning per word skyrockets.  

I'm getting older, though.  Not older as in "I used to be a freshman but now I'm a junior", older as in "there's a new funny movie coming out about a kid turning 21 that there is no way in hell I'm going to see because my wife won't want to watch it with me and I don't have even close to enough discretionary alone time to miss watching important sports for a college kid movie".  So there will be a lot of jokes in that movie that are funny, and there will be allusions to them, probably even on the front page, and I will miss the allusions.  Such is life.  

Long story somewhat shorter, I'm OK with missing a few inside jokes.  I won't be missing any front page content because of it.  

This encapsulates all that keeps us coming back.  I accidentally scared my young children who were adorably reading on the couch when Roundtree did what he did.  They recovered sufficiently to help me sing a few minutes later.

get to host some casual football fans for some football and not reveal the depths of my insanity/commitment to the cause.

Cheers!

They should do a home and home to see whether they could possibly turn that equality into a decdided inequality!

/yeh, past results are not a guarantee of future success, etc.

About two weeks ago, in upstate NY.

especially if it's a carrot and not a senior number switcharoo.

they're going to do so much owning that apostrophes will be considered always appropriate.  In fact, on the back of Kyle's jersey it will say Kaylis'''''''''.

shouldn't be too painful.  The hair isn't pulled out by the roots, but rather severs part way up the hair.  In this case it should feel about the same as getting a haircut, right?

I'm not an ump; however my reactions were a) I don't think he went, and b) it was close enough that I don't think that's a call the home plate ump should be making.

strong; I really really really hope that you are correct.  It would be like watching video games.

I thought the three piles would be maize, blue, and grey.  That's what works best for me.

if I tanned like him, would I look jacked like him?

for the great breakdowns.

whorrible.

it was, in his opinion, the most important single event in Western history. 

Incidentally, Mr. Dickman also tried to convince us that his last name meant "warrior of the forest" or some such thing in German.  He was wrong about the name thing.

that will only make it sound weirder.

"Which team's winning" is the solution.  In this case winning is a gerund, so it should be owned by the team.

/the more you know

/my dad made me learn too much grammar

also be acceptable.

/Grammar Union of National Socialists

for a Freak the Mighty reference!  You have my approval, and doubtless the approval of all of the other middle school English teachers on the board.

One of the reasons I don't like the one they picked is that they already had a shot at beating the concensus number one.  It seems that a prevailing sentiment in favor of the current layout is that "every week" matters; 'Bama's loss at home against LSU didn't matter in the end.  Oklahoma State's did.

and in so doing earning some points with my wife.  Win win.

the assistants of every program are in charge of ballet, leaving time for the head coaches to fill out the ballots.

that S.Car won't play Va. Tech in the ACC Championship game, since they're in the SEC. 

Other than that, I like your optimism.  I'm not sold, however, that we'll get thrown in the mix for the sheer good story-ness of it.  I haven't run the math (and I'm in the middle of grading, so I won't), but it seems that things get crowded when, along with the conference champs you have Bama, potentially an Arkansas team with losses only to LSU and Bama, one-loss Stanford, and highly ranked Big12 teams such as the OK/OK State loser.

I guess we'll wait and see.

as a "destroyed".  Any game in which an onside kick must be recovered in the 4th quarter in order to restore a more normal pulse rate is competitive, I would argue.

I like what you did with your final (parenthetical) paragraph.  As Captain Obvious, the Captain of the Obvious, I personally relish the opportunity to make a point and subsequently explain the point that I have made despite the fact that it should be as blitheringly obvious as Koger running free down the seam.  By pointing out the obvious thing that you did in exacting detail you furthered my mission of making sure that all things are obvious.  This is my mission largely because I am Captain of the Obvious, hence my title - Captain Obvious.  Often meaning is misconstrued or outright missed due to lack of transparency, which in this case I am using to mean "obviousness"; obviously I don't mean that people miss the meaning because the words are transparent in the sense that one sees right through them.  A further and more full explanation of one's precise meaning not only furthers the cause of the Obvious Brigade (a Brigade of concerned citizens working to make sure that all is obvious), but it diminishes the likelihood that feelings will get injured, resulting in regrettable response threads, resulting in a derailed thread that went off the tracks because one person missed something obvious.

Captain Obvious (me)

good chance of reign.  Or rein.  I can never remember witch.

 which people get struck by lightning each year, maybe give some guidance.

I would never wish for somebody to get hit by lightning, but if somebody on the planet is going to this year, maybe it could be . . . or if, you know 20 people are going to get hit. . .

I present the result of a quick Google search:

http://www.d-e-f-i-n-i-t-e-l-y.com/

/especially this week, we should spell things correctly

that they are back because the players love them, I'm on board.  I like the idea that it's an internal thing, giving the players more ownership. 

but I would submit that due to our current lack of a threatening, consistent passing game it could be argued that the offense has taken a step back. 

For those who care.

(this message brought to you by stodgy old people everywhere)

I'm on board with Brady; the more the conference wins, the better for us as a member of the conference.  Wins over conference opponents are more glorious and losses more understandable if our conference opponents do well in their other games.  This is not to say that part of me won't be happy if the Spartans drop a road game  . . .

in case you'd like to know.

was controlled by neither RR nor Hoke in year one.  One could make a compelling argument that            >                      .

Not too long ago they were National Champs, knocking off Appy State (ytas) on the way and winning a tough road game in Montana.  Incidentally, they accomplished this the year after Tim Hightower matriculated to the NFL. 

They are regularly competitive with UVA, so there's really not much reason to think that Duke will annihilate them.

while "playing a game" is to involve 10 - 12 folks in a big game of Rock, Paper, Scissors.  Drink every time you lose, everybody loses every time, and since everybody loses and drinks, everybody WINS!!

I kind of invented it, so if you profit from marketing this idea, shoot me a couple of mgoshirts or something.

On field turf?

to Texas to play in the Big East, or going to Texas to play in the SEC, or going to Oklahoma to play in the Newer, Bigger, Big 8, or playing for Michigan in the best 12 team conference in the land.  The more things change the more they get really weird.

Brian recalls his

waiting on the battlements.

"Glad I didn't swing!"

and it reminded me of this.  I like the idea of helping folks feel good about themselves, and I like the idea of competition being real and valid (as in, to win something you must in some way prevail over another).  I'm not sure these two things mix well.

2:50 - 3:05.

The platforms are in the floor, and the racks have adjustable support arms.  You can clean from the floor or go off of the support arms to clean from the hang.  The arms are great for weighted step-ups, too.

As I think through the D, I would love to see them each make a step such that offenses can't gameplan to focus on one dude and win one on ones across the rest of the board.  For RVB and Roh and Big Will to step up will make life easier for Martin, the LBs, the DBs and so on.  It's been so long since 3rd and long meant our DEs would be meeting 9 yards deep in the backfield, and I'm hoping that becomes the case again soon.

enjoyed that they got Liotta to play a role.  Costner at the end was also neat, but it was less surprising and thus less funny.

I assume you're registered with Beveled Guilt? 

MAD private schools lead the way.  Boys Latin and St. Paul's have middies who aren't on the first line getting D1 scholarships.  I believe that some competitive advantage is to be had by being able to be out on the field 3 weeks earlier than the Upstate NY folks every year.  I know VA plays some fall ball, and they and all of the folks to the south that play in the fall surely reap the benefits of extra time on the fields that the NYers don't get.

the enemy of their enemy become their friend?  I'm getting the feeling that many have turned on Pryor - will they at some point embrace those who further his personal ignominy if it is done without besmriching the program?

His success on the field seems to be more a product of raw athleticism than meticulously practiced repetitions at a particular skill.  If they needed some wins to keep them from whatever our 2008 would look like for them, I'm guessing he'd get a long look.

by saying I couldn't get a tattoo until I was 21.  So I avoided the now cliche tats that seemed totally sweet and cutting edge back in '98.  And I got branded instead (he never said I couldn't do that).  Just as permanent, if not moreso, but way more individualistic for a Caucasian like me.

Thanks, Dad.  I owe you one.

Maybe there won't be three boxes with red x's in them.  But if there are, he'll look like a genius of a prognosticator.

quotations showing the opinions of the speakers count?  How about boos coming from those still-filled stands?

He is fan of team that just got bounced.

like the Germans at Normandy.

so badly yourself.

The point.

As a wrestling coach there are some situations in which I teach thing A instead of thing B just as a matter of personal preference.  Either will work, I like A better, I teach A.  I bear no ill will toward B, and don't think less of coaches who implement B instead of A. 

Sometimes I teach thing A instead of thing C because I think thing C is poor technique.  It might be lazy, sloppy, overly old-fashioned, or just situationally ignorant.  I think less of coaches who teach thing C.

Background/font discussions, syntax, and the like seem to me like an A/B discussion.

Manbaw v. That girly spreadish crap seems like an A/C discussion.  Unless it is merely coachspeak, the supporters of these positions seem to bear some level of animosity at the very least toward the other system and possibly toward coaches who use that system.

IIRC, at least two of the plays that led to Denard spending considerable time off the field came from awkward hits/landings along the sideline, not predictable runs into the teeth of the defense.  While I understand how quickly the idea "the D knows it's coming and they want to hurt you and if you run it where they are, they WILL hurst you" can catch on, it's fairly intuitive that injury is more likely when greater speed has been built by both players (open field) and the runner changes out of protect-self mode into it's-safe-now mode (sideline).

Just sayin'.  On the whole, yes, I am enthused for the possibility of the many great things Denard can and will do this year.

despite the fact that I haven't read through, so I'm sure many others have already said . . .

Just over two months ago we emptied our DVRs of the travesty that was Michigan on a national stage getting trounced while an up and coming program put the coup de grace on our speculated-to-soon-be-canned coach.  Today we got to watch our up and coming program put the coup de grace on a soon to be canned coach.  And we smiled, said soppy things, shouted with joy, and put tears of sheer delight into our beers while Douglass threw it down with two hands.

Time (and wins) truly heal all wounds.

to the hospital for the birth of a (currently) meh 3* 2029 slot ninja, I'm laying off of the sauce tonight.  But if I were not, I'd be indulging in an Ommegang Abbey Ale 750 "victory cigar".  And bless all of you for having an extra beer on my behalf; I'll repay the favor.

Fred says:

"I would love to compare Coach Alexander to one of the many tremendous running backs I've had the pleasure of coaching.  However, his greatness as a coach is so explosive and his ability to spin a negative into a positive is so dazzling that it would be silly to do so.  Even if I gave each of the running backs my standard grade of 13 on a scale of 1 to 10, adding those scores together would be too weak a sum against which to make a comparison when you're trying to describe a guy like Bacari.  I would keep going if I were as eloquent as he is, but clearly I fall short in that area too.  I'll just say it like this: Bacari Alexander is so great that I am unable to describe him despite my powers of comparison and hyperbole."

Bacari says:

"Energy mixed with positivity make the most important combo.  Coach Jax FTW!!  I'll be his wingman any day HALOL!!!!!"

Either way, you've got a winner.

Central Ohio kids should probably follow Marcus Ray and get the hell out of Dodge.  I'm shooting from the hip, but I believe he was from the Columbus area, while Woodson was closest to the Toledo region (Northeast of Findlay, Southeast of Toledo, I think).

Someone thinks that.

that despite some turbulence in the past few years, there is a pervasive if sporadic desire to emphasize the positive.  The good writing on the front page, the respectful disagreements on the board, and the insightful research in many diaries are great too; in any discussion with non MGO fans, we stand enlightened, informed, (and better) because of the time we spend here.

high level of hilarity (to some), we probably shouldn't overlook its equally high level of efficacy.  Right, Cam Newton?

a fake bubble screen that becomes a seam route to an OMG WIDE OPEN slot receiver.  You know, like the one we hit against ND and the one Auburn hit against Oregon?

like four or five years ago.  I'm just saying, if you keep tabs on this particular sitch, it's nothing shocking. 

So, let me state what you're implying: it's fun to read Newsweek when you're feeling nostalgic.

/arrogance and a touch of facetiousness delightfully intermingled

as the hyperbole coordinator.

Can't post it, though.  Oh, wait . . .

that just might have some validity popped into my head.

Is it possible that the answer to fighting over-recruiting is under-recruiting?  Instead of scrambling toward NSD and handing out offers like Chinese restaurant menus, maybe the new coach keeps what he can, signs any studs he can bring in, and then leaves extra room for next year's class.  I know on the surface this seems simplistic and dumb, but bear with me. 

The benefit of over-recruiting (aside from reserving yourself your very own special section of hell) is that one gets to try out a few extra players; a coach can sift through some three stars to see who'll stick, and who'd be better served receving a form letter.  If we fill the 2011 class with three stars, some will invariably pan out.  Others won't.  Since we play from the moral high ground, every additional offer we throw is a chance to be saddled with four years of non-production on the roster for that scholarship. 

In essence, under-recruiting this year allows us to over-recruit next year in a non-reprehensible way, AND recruiting a larger class will happen with an eye towards what positions we'll really need in the coming years under a new coach.

At this point, he looks best if he returns to Stanford, proclaiming that nothing he's seen can even come close, and that no matter how much money San Fran throws his way there is just nothing to compare to working with the Cardinal.

And then he needs to coach there for the rest of his career, or at least until he bags a couple of championships.

I haven't had the courage to mess around with fumbles yet; I've been putting Denard around 200 passing and 80 rushing, with Vincent chipping in about 50 and getting happy results. 

Having read many of BlueSeoul's game notes, I feel that MSU might chip in enough unforced errors to counterbalance the unforced errors that our offense makes.

not that my opinion matters anyway.  As for the rest of the board, I'm guessing each side has reasons that any result can be fit into the existing viewpoint.  We all get pretty good at playing up the things that help us argue our points and explaining away data that might tend to support the opposite side.

My opinion is what it is in part because I have had the immeasurable blessing of learning quite a bit about coaching from a top-notch coach.  He is a program builder.  He is phenomenal at getting average kids to buy in, believe, work hard, and earn success.  I was privileged to work with him in starting one program on the path to dominance. 

As I took my first head coaching job last year, he advised me to take heart in the small successes and not be discouraged by the appearance of slow or non-existent progress.  After years of  'start dynasty, rinse, repeat', he advised me that "The first two years anywhere suck". 

Incidentally, it was in year three that the school at which we worked together took its first title.

to those who are financially farthest and morally closest to bankruptcy. 

Better to be known for a cloud of dust or a mudpit?

counts as 1/100th of a chance.  With the zero tolerance policy, everybody gets one chance. 

Fractional chances are rounded down.

smells faintly of freshly mowed grass.

I would be among a sizable contingent of folks with Bruno-esque surprised faces if UConn defeats, never mind "handles" Oklahoma.  That being said, if they do win, it probably says more about UConn than Michigan.  It says that they made a lot of progress from Sept. 4 to now.  They did not play like a particularly strong team on that day.  Although I could be wrong, I would surmise that they'll have to play like a remarkably good team to come away with a win against the Sooners.

makes piggy-backing so easy.  Am I supposed to come up with mis-spellings on my own?  Sicne I never make typographical or speling mistakes I have to wait for others to generate content in order for me to post.

Didn't he get the memo about the new TPS sheet protocol?

clouding the issue with relevant facts.  Such clear insights and background information do nothing but sully the clarity of my initial glimpse of the situation.  A glimpse of any given situation provides more than enough information for me to develop and broadcast an opinion that will be rife with indignation and replete with swear words.  What a buzzkill.

Yin.

 tougher to bring down than your average yak, even at such close range.

never see it coming.

Individual comments heard by individual kids might be likened to a snowflake twisting through the cold air and gently settling on a roof.  Enough snowflakes landing in the same spot can effect some impressive changes.

Clean up your act.

/painfully lame

udderly ashamed of yourself for trying to milk that for even more bad puns. 

but be nice to Joe Flacco, Tim Hightower, and the many other FCSers from the A10.

EDIT: meant as a reply to Blue in SB's comment about relegation. 

So, Jesus should NOT be the one watching over the young child, then?

I'm going with kerosene and bleach on the rocks.  If I end up in heaven, that'll be sweet.  If I end up in hell, I'll feel similar to the way I do now.

Rasslin' practice in the morning.  Ask me again at 11:00 tomorrow morning.

Offensive philosophy - a ballcarrier should make an unblocked man miss.

Defensive philosophy - an unblocked man should make the tackle.

corrected.

I didn't think we had to win the turnover battle to beat Purdue.

is what I thought going into the Illinois game.  Happily, I was wrong.

It's about effort.  He has tried his best, and often has been the best we've had to trot out there.  And against Purdue, he even made some nice plays.  I even saw him make a tackle within two yards of the LOS! 

 that this post has its roots in the recruitment of the receiver who currently holds the single game receiving record at the University of Michigan.

to know what to watch and what to fast-forward.

are showing.